cross-stitched baby quilt - HELP!

I have about a million questions for you wise ones before I undertake my next project. It is actually a UFO of my mom's (she's a cross-stitcher, not a quilter) that I offered to hand quilt. Here are a few pics:

I don't have any of the original instructions, so I'm pretty clueless. Will the blue lines wash out? If so, should I wait to try to wash the orange spots off until after it's quilted? What's the best way to get rid of them?

Do you think the blocks are meant to be separated by sashing? I really don't want to cut it up. Will it look ok as all one piece?

I think I would like to use white flannel as the batting and a more colorful, matching flannel for the backing. Is there any reason this would be a problem? Is flannel difficult to hand quilt? Can I use cheap Joann's flannel on the inside and nice LQS flannel on the outside? Would it be a problem to wash and dry (shrink) the flannel before quilting but not the top?

I'm planning to follow the quilting designs as marked (a square around the embroidery and then hearts outside of that), but do you think that's sufficient? I don't want to quilt over the embroidered parts but they are fairly large, so I want them to be secure. The embroidery is 11.5x8 inches and the entire top is about 35x40.

Been years and years since I did any cross stitch on stamped linen, but the blue is suppose to wash out. I would not even try to quilt that top until I washed it - gently - and pressed it from the reverse side damp. I use to put a towel under it while I pressed so the stitches wouldn't flatten. I think it will look great as a one piece top. It is going to be quite a treasure when your done.

I agree with pressing it from the reverse with a towel underneath. I would not advise washing the top before quilting, though. I would be afraid that the background fabric would shrink and distort. Once fabric is quilted rather thoroughly to batting and backing, the batting controls shrinkage. In other words, at that point the top fabric would not be able to shrink more than the batting shrinks. Fabrics that are washed on their own (without quilting) can shrink and distort terribly, especially with the cross-stitch already there (which will affect how the portion of the fabric underneath the embroidery shrinks), and especially since you have no way of knowing what that fabric is. If it is cheaper fabric, which I suspect is used in many kits, you really do not know how it may shrink. I would definitely not take that chance.

Which bring us to batting. I think the end result would be better if you use an actual batting rather than flannel. For easy quilting, I suggest Quilter's Dream request weight or select weight. This would be similar to flannel but would provide more opacity (opaqueness?) so backing would not shadow through to the white top. Especially since you are hand quilting, you want at least a little bit of loft to show off your hand quilting stitches.

Flannel for the backing would be very nice. However, I would wash and dry the flannel twice first, as flannel has a tendency to shrink a *lot*. This is not a problem for machine-quilted quilts with moderate quilting, but it could end up distorting a hand quilted quilt if it is not thoroughly prewashed.

The brown spot will come out later; it is not necessary to remove it before quilting. If necessary you can use RetroClean to get the spot out (http://www.retroclean.com ).

The broken lines most likely mean that the embroidered blocks were intended to be cut apart and then sewn back together with sashing between the blocks. You do not have to do this if you do not want to. If you do not cut the blocks apart and add sashing, then I would hand quilt over those lines.

The blue markings may or may not come out later depending on how old the top is and how it was stored. If the marks do not come out, it simply conveys the message that this is a vintage style top and adds to the charm. I would not worry about that.

I would worry, however, about the colorfastness of the threads used. Many embroidery threads (especially reds) will bleed when exposed to water. This is another reason why I would not prewash the top before quilting. Once quilting and binding are finished, I would wash the entire quilt in a machine that uses a *lot* of water -- for example, the largest front loader at the laundromat -- and use Synthrapol for the first wash. You need lots of water in order to dilute any dye bleeds, and Synthrapol works to keep loose dye particles suspended in water so they can be rinsed away instead of settling into the fabric.

I have several stamped cross stitched tablecloths handed down to me from my DH's grandmother and those blue markings fade a lot, but they have never come out entirely. Even the ones that have been laundered/cleaned many times, I can still see the faint blue marks. I suppose different manufacturers and different fabrics might give different results.

I see no reason why you can't quilt within the blocks in a few places for stability, as long as you don't stitch over the embroidery, as you said. This really will be a treasure when it's done, something you and your mom both put time and love into. I hope it winds up with someone very special.

www.makeminepatchwork.etsy.comwww.zibbet.com/makeminepatchwork"Piecin' a quilt's like livin' a life...The Lord sends us the pieces, but we can cut 'em out and put 'em together pretty much to suit ourselves, and there's a heap more in the cuttin' and the sewin' than there is in the caliker...I've had a heap of comfort all my life making quilts, and now in my old age I wouldn't take a fortune for them." (Eliza Calvert Hall, Aunt Jane of Kentucky)

I agree with just about everything Prism has said. Hand quilting flannel is not difficult at all, in my opinion. And honestly, I've never had the blue lines NOT wash out of stamped cross-stitch or embroidery pieces. If you really want to wash the top first before quilting (although I see no need), I would suggest hand-washing with liquid dish soap. Press the excess water out with your hands then roll in a towel. Once you have the bulk of the water out of the top, lay as flat as possible to finish drying. Then press from behind as suggested above. This will also tell you if the embroidery threads are colorfast.

I have a stamped cross-stitch quilt that has been in progress for a long time. Some of those blue lines are the quilting marks to guide the hand quilter. Do you think color catchers will work the same for embroidery thread as it does for fabric? That is my hope. I have also wondered, and have not read, if the RetroClean would help take those blue marks out after quilting.

Color catchers catch dye bleeds whether they come from fabric or embroidery thread. In my opinion, though, they are not as effective as Synthrapol. Whichever one you use, it's really important to use ***lots*** of water and to make sure that whatever is likely to bleed does not stay in contact with other fabrics while damp.

I don't think Retro Clean necessarily takes out the blue marks, although it might help.

I would wash the entire quilt in a machine that uses a *lot* of water -- for example, the largest front loader at the laundromat -- and use Synthrapol for the first wash. You need lots of water in order to dilute any dye bleeds, and Synthrapol works to keep loose dye particles suspended in water so they can be rinsed away instead of settling into the fabric.

Originally Posted by Prism99

Color catchers catch dye bleeds whether they come from fabric or embroidery thread. In my opinion, though, they are not as effective as Synthrapol. Whichever one you use, it's really important to use ***lots*** of water and to make sure that whatever is likely to bleed does not stay in contact with other fabrics while damp.

I strongly agree with both of these statements. LOTS of water, Synthrapol, and may I suggest an extended soaking time as well. The longer you can let it sit in lots of water, the less likely you will have bleeding in future washes.

Seeing those tiny blue dots brought back a memory of my mom showing me how to quilt when I was a teenager. She said that each dot was one stitch, down and back up on one dot. After trying that for an hour or so, I was "never going to quilt again". LOL Well, I changed my mind in my late 20's, did one of those cross stitch quilts, queen size, and swore I would never cross stitch again!!( Mom's church quilters hand quilted that one for me) Now I would rather piece a quilt and machine quilt, but I have done and do all the things I would never do again. BUT!! my hand quilting will never be as tiny as those little dots!LOL

You have received some excellent advice!! It's going to be adorable - I love cross-stitch. Use to do counted cross-stitch and sometimes, still yearn to do some. Wish I was retired - my full-time job sure is messing up my sewing and quilting time!!